New Delhi: Union Minister for Women and Child Development Menaka Gandhi on Friday directed the officials of her ministry to clear Meghalaya’s Rs 35 crore ICDS backlog for which the implementation of the scheme in the Hill State has gone off track.
This was informed by Meghalaya’s Social Welfare Minister Deborah Marak following her meeting with the Union Minister here on Friday.
The implementation of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) had come in for criticism for lack of fund in the department. The Union Minister even ordered that in future too whatever allocation has been fixed for the state should be cleared immediately, Marak said.
ICDS is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, wherein the Government of India is responsible for programme planning and Operating costs and the State Government is responsible for programme implementation and supplementary nutrition. This is done to lay the foundation for the proper psychological, physical and social development of the child.
Incidentally, the Social Welfare department was accused of embezzling fund to the tune of over Rs 35 crore meant for the payment to self help groups and women’s organisations. But the department had assure that inadequate and delayed sanction from the Centre did not allow it to clear all pending dues and it will not hold back payments related to the actual expenditure on Supplementary Nutrition Programme.
Now with the Centre clearing the fund payment will be made to the concerned shelf help groups at the earliest, Marak added.
